Blackouts
by D3stiny-Sm4sher
Summary: An aspiring musician of 18 years, Ashley Mizuki Robbins is dealing with a lot of normal issues for a freshman in college. But her black outs continue to intrude on her day-to-day existence.
1. Part 1

**A/N: This is a short story, broken into two parts to make it easier to read. Part 2 is nearly done and will be coming soon. This is a short story written as a fanfic based on Another Code:R (the sequel to 'Trace Memory' as it was known in NA). You do not need to have played the game to get the story, and I do not spoil any big plot stuff for those who haven't played it - there's just some character references you'll be able to appreciate if you have played it. Otherwise, you can look at it as a small slice-of-life short story.**

This story is dedicated to the late Cing, Ashley Mizuki Robins, and everyone I met at Lake Juliet.

–

_I need to stop doing this to myself. The guitar – I need to focus on the guitar instead. C'mon, Ash. You can do this on your own._

Ashley closed her eyes, steadying her palms against the worn wood of the red guitar in her lap. She wrapped her fingers around the fretboard with one hand. She plucked her pick against the strings with the other hand. The gentle sloshing of the lake was the accompaniment she had desperately been seeking all day. The sun was on its way down over Lake Juliet, and Ashley Mizuki Robins was inclined to enjoy the time to herself against the orange and yellow haze cast across the waters. It had been a busy day of socializing and camping, but now she needed some time to herself. Time to drink in the sights and the sounds of the lake's tranquility before she was back at university again. Back to where _he _was, where _they _were, and...-

_Stop it. Guitar. Back to it._

With a forced sigh through tightened nostrils, Ashley opened her eyes back up. She strummed at the strings in repetition, trying to get her flow going. Get the rhythm back, get the chords realigned in her fingers the way they were in her head. Strumming, strumming...She repeated the chord progression for a couple of minutes. She began humming the harmony part. It was the part she had gotten so used to singing. Her practice trailed off, allowing her to readjust her position, her grip, clear her throat.

But it wasn't clearing her head. And playing her guitar _always _cleared her head...What was up?

She chewed at her lip a little, swallowing saliva and humming the chords once more. A moment of quiet passed before she attempted singing along with her guitar.

"~The river, the river, it tumbles on down; A blue flood, a true flood; it crumbles a-...~"

Her voice caught, and she coughed, the practice run stopping as soon as it had started. It had been some kind of a sob that her throat had gotten stuck on. She forced another cough, trying to clear her passages. But they were already clear. It wasn't the lungs or her throat that weren't working right...

_I can't even finish the first verse? Really? Why does it...hurt so much? Why is it so hard? This isn't fair. Why does all the unfair stuff happen to me? No. Nevermind. I'm fine. I'll play this song. By _myself. _It's _my _song. Not his. I'm not just going to let him take it away from me. He can have his stupid band. His stupid bassist. His stupid...-_

_-Rrrrrmmm!-_

"Huh?"

Ashley's heart skipped a beat, jarred by the sensation of her hip being rattled. The world, previously faded from her consciousness, reformed around her in a startling instant. There she'd gone again, blacking out and getting lost in her head. Her cell phone had vibrated, calling her back to reality.

Flinging out an angry, short-lived chord, Ash let the guitar rest in her lap as she fidgeted her phone out of her pocket. Her white cargo pants were tight at the hips and loose at the ankles, just the way she liked them – they were white, matching her hair, but despite being new, already a bit grass stained from her camping adventure. After finagling her flip phone out – a device bedazzled in eclectic stickers of flowers, Pinkie Rabbit, and stars – she popped it open to check the message.

[From: janet]  
>[where u at mrs rockstar? ur not at bobs shack!]<p>

Ashley groaned internally, cocking her head back and glaring up at the branches of the tree she was sitting against. Janet, an old high school classmate of hers, was also in the area that weekend, visiting her reformed cousin Elizabeth. When Ash had first met Beth, two years prior, she had never imagined the two would maintain contact. True, Ashley's Dad was still working under Beth's father, but it was more than that. After everything that happened at JC Valley, the research company their fathers worked at, both Beth and her dad seemed to be making things work, setting aside their troubles, shedding away the layers of insecurities that had brought out their aggressions when Ashley had met them. Ash was a bit envious in that regard – she wished _her _Dad would turn over a new leaf, but it just wasn't to be. And another thing: 'Mrs.' Rockstar? Nope. It should be 'Miss' now, right? But Ashley hadn't mentioned the breakup at the social gathering earlier that afternoon. No one had asked her about it – well, they'd asked about the band, and she'd curtly explained her departure. But that had been it.

Everyone else had occupied the lunch conversation at Bob's Snack Shack quite a bit, many of them with good stories and good news...Tommy and Sam were living the Animal House life – no surprise there. Bob's grand plans for opening that online store had brought a bit of success, but not enough for him to totally close up the diner. Then again, Ashley was sort of glad in a way, as she was now finally able to appreciate the food when she had a chance to visit the lake. JC Valley as a company was putting itself back together and devoted to researching anti-pollution venues rather than memory research. Ranger Dan was in better spirits than Ashley had ever seen him – which was saying something, given how cheery the man was to begin with. Janet, like Ashley, was working her way through her first year of university, and Elizabeth was alongside her as a classmate. There was talk of aspirations, talk of romances, talk of all of the things that were going so well for everyone – if not as speedily or handily as they might have hoped.

Ashley hadn't wanted to weigh things down with her mediocre if not depressing recent events. Grades were iffy, none of her new college friends felt authentic, the breakup was still a fresh wound, and her music 'career?' Ugh. Suffice it to say, leaving a band put a musician a step back. It had been a solid month since she'd performed anything live in front of a crowd. Ashley had spent the past week during break desperately trying to take two steps forward, but...Her efforts at converting old, unused lyrics into original songs was proving...disappointing. She'd always relied so much on _him _to do the compositions...And now, on her own, she was feeling painfully aware that she'd neglected that side of things.

That was the rough and risky part about building your life around another person – building your craft around another person's talents, your future around their plans, and your social life around their friends. If it fell through, where did that leave you? Huh? It left you lost. Lonely. Bitter. Frustrated. Without any...-

_-Rrrrrmmm!-_  
><em>What?! Oh...The phone again.<em>

That recurring skip of her heart as she was yanked out of her own head had been happening a _lot _in recent days. She had to get it together and stop spacing out so much, or everyone would notice. And _then _she'd be given a hard time about ignoring their advice...

Reluctantly, Ashley checked the phone again. Yep. Sure enough. Couldn't even wait five minutes...

[From: janet]  
>[hello? earth to ash. whats up? whered you go?]<p>

[Reply]  
>[To: janet]<br>[practicing for tonight. need space. i'll be there later.]

As soon as she'd finished watching the little [Sending...] envelope animation conclude, Ash found herself regretting typing out the phrase [need space]. No way a girl like Janet wasn't going to read into that.

With an irritable sigh, Ash ran her fingers through her bangs, curving them off of her eyes from where the lakeside wind had set them. She dropped the phone in the grass to her right and wormed her arms back around her trusty red instrument. Aw, shoot. Where was she at? It took a minute to re-acclimate her hands to the right chord progression that the song started off on. Naturally, as soon as she'd gotten her muscle memory back on track...-

_-Rrrrrmmm!-_

Ashley ignored it at first and continued to play for a couple of minutes. She couldn't bring herself to practice singing. By forgetting the lyrics for a bit and just letting her fingers dance with the strings, she found a few moments of genuine respite. But it wasn't to last. The thoughts began to creep in through the cracks of her consciousness and the notes slowed to a stop.

_What if Dad actually shows up for once? What if he makes a scene? Or what if he _doesn't _show up, like last time? Dad...Urgh. What you said yesterday still hurts. How could you say that?_

The topic of Dad was sore at the moment. Ash had avoided telling him about the breakup – he'd found out through Jessica, which Ash should've seen coming. It wasn't like a secret or something...She just didn't feel comfortable talking with Dad about dating stuff. It was the sort of thing she wanted to tell people on her own terms, anyway. At the right time. But with Dad, stuff like that rarely ever felt like the right time. They'd gone and grown distant again. At least now Ash was so busy with college that she barely had time to feel bummed about it...Away at school, Dad couldn't come visit her on the weekends, but even before she'd left for college, he'd been slipping on that, too. It was a cycle by now. He'd try to make up for lost time, only to let things go, more and more. It wasn't as bad as it had used to be, Ash could give him that. But they still never really did much together on the occasion they _did _see one another.

The last time they _had _talked was over the phone the day prior, when they'd gotten into an argument. She'd held her punches, but really, this was more out of emotional exhaustion. He'd gotten surprisingly offensive, though, calling her out on a number of things. Letting grades slip, not staying in touch, not seeing the doctor...Well, but she didn't _need _to see a doctor. She was perfectly fine. "_You seem unwell,_" he'd said. _"I really think you should go back to seeing the physician."_ How could he have said something like that? After all the times he'd abandoned her, left her to take care of herself...Didn't he realize she was independent? Didn't he get that she'd had no _choice _but to learn to take care of herself? So what if she spent some time in her head? If she had an illness, a physical problem, of course she'd see a doctor. But spending time to herself, just thinking, that wasn't-...That didn't mean she was _sick _or something, she just...-

_I have to stop. I'm doing it again._

With a sharp inhalation, like waking up, Ashley caught herself from stumbling too deep into thought. She inhaled the lakeside air, listened to the rolling waves, gazed at the tussling branches above. She'd almost gone and done it again. It was really bad today for some reason. Then again, it seemed to be happening _more _now that she was by herself...Maybe taking some space wasn't what she'd needed, after all. Or maybe the familiar and missed sensations of Lake Juliet were bringing out these ep-...Ick. No. They were not 'episodes.' They were just...moments of deep thought. Was that really so bad?

[From: janet]  
>[space? whats wrong? u were really quiet today.]<p>

[Reply]  
>[To: janet]<br>[nothing's wrong. i'm fine. see you guys in a bit.]

_Nice one, Ashley. You're a terrible liar, like always...Even in a text message._

Ashley set the phone away again and mustered what focus she could into practicing. She made herself sing. She made herself play. Mechanically, she practiced, forcing the song out. It took about ten minutes until she managed to get through one solid playthrough, and even then, she wasn't satisfied. It just...didn't sound good. She felt like a fish out of water, flopping around. No surprise, really: Ashley Mizuki Robins wasn't the singing sort. She played guitar, and she wrote lyrics. That was what she'd learned to get good at. Half-geeky-Caucasian and half-geeky-Japanese, that was her genetic makeup. She probably didn't have a 'cool' gene in her body, much less any inherited gifts in the arts. With an ornery look about her, Ashley bumped her head against the tree she was leaned back on. So much for this special spot – the big tree by the lake shore. It worked for her friend Matthew, maybe, but it wasn't working for her that day. On that subject, Ash was a bit disappointed that Matt hadn't been able to make it. It had taken a while, but after the boy had sorted things out regarding his missing dad – a story unto itself – he'd ended up accepting his uncle's provisions regarding boarding school in London. Ash was happy for him. He was moving on, growing up...

Matthew Crusoe, the budding scientist-to-be, was doing well for himself. They'd chatted over IM the week prior. He'd regaled to Ash all about the excitement of being off on his own at a fancy British school with fancy British teachers and fancy British foods. And it sounded like he'd gotten a fancy British girlfriend recently, though he was coy about it. Ashley was still learning to pick up on that sort of thing – romantic implications. She'd barely survived a relationship herself. She didn't have the energy to be worrying about others' love lives. It was rough business. She'd never been good with romance. It was always something other people had to point out to her – when people were supposedly flirting, that kind of thing. Her radar just didn't seem to pick up on it. She hadn't even realized it when it had finally happened with her – and _him. _Her friends in high school had found it to be 'obvious,' and she refused to believe it – to see it. They'd spent so much time together because they were in a _band _together, obviously. By itself, that was nothing special. But by halfway through Senior year, he'd asked her out, and not knowing what else to do, she'd said 'sure.'

Dating him had at first felt more like a social obligation of sorts, like she was only doing it because, well, she never _had. _But he'd grown on her. Plant a flower in your garden, and even if you don't water it or tend to it, nature has a way of providing the sunlight and the rain just by the flower being there. That was how it had been, how she looked at it. But the roots had grown too deep for their own good. Loneliness and a garden devoid of flowers made the one that grew all the more precious, after all.

_Oh, that's actually a good idea. I need to remember to turn that into a song lyric...Hm._

_'Growing in the garden, all I've put my heart in...-'_

But could she really even write a break up song if she'd wanted to? Ashley was a sensitive soul, after all. She wasn't ignorant to the notion that every messed up thing regarding her murdered mother and wayward father carried issues. Even so, Dad's implication from their chat the day prior was infuriating.

_Memories. Good ones. Think of a good memory, Ash. A happy one. Turn _that _into a song..._

Her first kiss immediately came to mind. Which was dumb. It hadn't been special. By all accounts, not memorable. But Ashley was the sort to remember seemingly innocuous things like that, especially when a new sensation was involved. She didn't care to dwell on it in that moment. No, a different memory would be better, because that one still hurt too much. Her brain skipped ahead, like a DVD player skipping scenes forward, trying to get to that part of the movie she actually wanted to see. Nope, that was painful, too. So was that one. That one, too. It was there somewhere...A memory she wanted to sit on.

Warm breath against the back of her neck. Her fingers sliding against ivory keys with hesitation. They were heavy, weighted keys. Not like that keyboard of his. His calloused hands rubbing at her bare biceps, goading her to give it a try. The breath on her neck got warmer, closer. Damp contact against the skin on her right shoulder. Such warm lips. Always warm lips. Her cheeks burned happily, like a campfire on a warm summer evening. Her fingers pressing against the keys. Sour notes, giggling, humming laughs into her ear. Shoulder rubs of reassurance. Kisses of encouragement. Trusted hands clasping her own from above, directing fingers on which keys to approach. Pressing down. Hesitant chords. His warm, tense presence leaning against her from behind. His tension loosening her. His hands taking over the keys. Strings singing from their wooden chamber. His voice joining them. Just..._singing, _everything was singing_. _So good. He was _so _good. Mesmerizing. A choir of ivory and metal and wood and _him_. Chords burned into her brain, a melody she could never forget, yet one she couldn't remember. Faded notes, lost in the warmth of capable hands, striking chords against her frame, hitting the right notes, a merry melody sung between lips as...-

[~]

_Huh?_

A steep gasp through her nostrils flicked Ashley's brain with needed oxygen as she was brought back to the present by a ringtone. Again? Seriously? What a pain...Ugh, and her cheeks were burning up just from the memory...It was such a nice memory, too.

[~]

_Ow._

And there it was – the sting of reality. She realized her eyes were damp. Her heart was getting overwhelmed again...

The musical tone which had jarred her from her memories struck a third time.

[~]

Oh, duh. It was her phone.

[Call from...]  
>[<strong>Dad<strong>]

Aw, shoot. Not now...What was it _this _time? Probably yet another apology that he was going to be late, which would later become a follow-up apology that he wasn't going to make it at all.

_Dad..._

The gentle breeze sweeping over the lake had pushed some strands of white hair back over Ashley's face. She'd been growing it out past her shoulders, but she wasn't much of a stylist. Spitting out hair irritably, she answered her phone.

"Dad?"

["Ashley. Where are you?"]

"I'm at the lake."

["Really? I just got a call from Bob asking when you'd be showing up."]

"I was there for lunch. I'll be back later. I'm...by myself right now."

["Why? I thought you came here to see your friends."]

"Y-yea, I did. I mean, I am. I'll be back with them again soon, I just...-"

["You never called me back. I had no idea when you got here or when you were coming."]

_Maybe if you paid attention _yesterday _when I'd _told _you..._

"I've had my own stuff going on, Dad."

["Stuff?"]

"Yea, stuff."

["What kind of stuff? Music stuff?"]

"Friends? Practice? Why, did you want to see me or something?"

["Ah, yes. Practice. You're guitaring tonight."]

_Wow. You actually _remembered, _Dad._

"Yep..."

["I'll do my best to make it, Ashley."]

"Dad...Seriously?"

["I just have this _one _minor detail I need to wrap up."]

"C'mon..."

["If I'd known you were coming so soon I would've saved it for tomorrow, but...-"]

"Yea, _OK_..." Mm, maybe a little too much unintended sarcasm. Dad picked up on it. Like he was _learning _to socialize, or something.

["Listen, Ashley, I'm...still upset with you. Problems are best solved as they arise. But we can talk things through. I _will _see you tonight. I promise."]

_Uh-huh. OK. Sure. Like the word 'promise' means anything to us anymore..._

"Sure. OK."

_Ugh, stop it, Ash. Stop sounding so whiny! You're not a whiner. Try harder here._

["What time are you going to be at Bob's?"]

"About an hour."

["Excellent. I'll do my best."]

"All right..." Ashley sighed.

_Try harder._  
>"Sounds good," she added wistfully. "It'll be nice to see you."<p>

["Yes, it..._has _been a while, hasn't it?"]

"Heh. Three months. Yep. I've been busy."

["I suppose we both have. And you're spending the weekend here, correct?"]

"Today and tomorrow," Ashley corrected as politely as she could. She'd already gone over all of this with him yesterday. For a scientist who'd devoted so much of his life to the pursuit of understanding memory, Dr. Robins was pretty darned forgetful.

["Ah, yes. Good. That's good. You...wanted to do some proper camping tomorrow, right?"]

"Mm..." Ashley nodded absent-mindedly. Oh, duh, Dad couldn't see it. "Sure, I think I'll still be up for that."

["Maybe catch some fish with your old man?"]

Ashley laughed through her nose, her eyes sliding over the lake's orange glow.

"I'm not so sure either of us will manage to do _that_," she teased. Had her father even figured out how to hook a worm yet? Ashley didn't know a thing about fishing, either. Maybe Ranger Dan could give them a hand – as embarrassing as that might be. But it'd be better to be laughing at themselves than arguing...

["Ha, well...We'll have to do our best. Besides, we could use some life-form samples from the middle of the lake for testing."]

_Ugh. Really, Dad...?_

"I guess we'll see," Ashley eked out. She kind of wanted to just let it be for now, come back and dive into things when they were in the same room.

["Well,"] Dad said after a moment of odd silence. ["I should let you get back to practice."]

"All right. Thanks."

["I love you."]

"Love you, too, Dad..."

After hanging up her phone, Ashley turned the device off. She needed some time without the distractions. She was going to buckle down. No more straying into thoughts or memories. Just her and the guitar. Just her and the songs.

–

The walk back to the residential section of Lake Juliet was slow and somber, and Ashley did her best to absorb the tranquil sights and sounds around her rather than focus on her frustratingly unproductive practice session. She'd gotten so used to running around the lake area – just dashing from one point of interest to the next – that it was refreshing to not have anything pressing to worry about. She could just _walk_, drink it all in. Typically on a long walk like this, she'd listen to some tunes on her music player – she still had that old keepsake one from Dad – but in her current mindset, she just knew that doing so would only serve to aggravate her with envy at the skills of others.

The trails were beautiful at twilight. The stars were starting to show up above, and they weaved together with the clouds to create a natural painting she could never see as clearly from her city campus. The way the whole picture reflected on the lake's calm surface that evening made it all the sweeter.

_Why can't I do it? I want to create music that makes people feel the way this place makes _me _feel. That's possible. Right? Of course it is. I've heard songs that do it. Why can't _I _do it? Am I just...not good enough? Do I need more practice? Do I need to try making it on my own, hash things out that way, or...find a new band? Do I have what it takes to be a lone-star musician to begin with? I'm not so sure I'm strong enough for that kind of weight. I can't even handle what's on my plate right now, much less all the craziness of being a rock star._

_Like I'm going to be a rock star at all...Who am I kidding, here?_

Her head flashed with fragmented memories of the past few months. Pre-canned e-mail auto-replies and voicemails, feedback from friends...

_[Your recent entry, '__**Hotel at Dusk'**__, is incompatible with this contest's parameters. Please review our submission requirements and revise your submission under the proper category in order for it to be considered. We look forward to reviewing this year's entries!]_

"_That's great, Ash. It sounds good. Pretty good, yea. But where's the vocals at?"_

_[Sorry! Your entry was not selected for the next phase of the contest. But don't despair! We'll be back again next year! Keep at it, Rockstar-In-The-Making!]_

_["Thank you for your submission, Miss Robins, but unfortunately, your music isn't what we're looking for right now. It just doesn't have the right kind of energy to it."]_

"_Sorry, Ashley. I'm just not feeling it. Where's your partner at? I think that's what's missing. It needs more soul to it. I know that's harsh, but you asked for my honest opinion."_

"_It's lovely, Ashley."  
>"Really, Jessica? You're not just saying that? You like it?"<br>"Ash, of course I like it. I like _everything _you make!"_

"_Oh. Heh. Right..."_

_I was an idiot. I was wrong. 'Just want something bad enough and you'll get it.' That's how I used to think. What I used to tell my friends. But that's not right. That's rubbish. That's not how the world works. You can want it, you can work for it, you can even give up everything...and still fail. Still lose what you worked so hard for._

_Like Mom and Dad did. _

_Now I'm just failing, too. Carrying on a legacy of failure._

_I can't just give up, though. No, I'd never do that, not in a thousand years. But how am I supposed to make it when I can barely pl-_

"Ashley?"

"Huh?!"  
>Ashley's chest jumped with alarm at the voice calling to her from behind. Dangit. She'd let it happen again. She had to regain her bearings. Was she even walking in the right...-? OK, yea, still on track. Duh, of course she was, there was just <em>one <em>path.

"Is that you, Miss?" inquired the figure she was about to cross paths with in the dusky park trail.

"Hello...?" Ashley said timidly, announcing her presence.

"Ah, so it _is _you," greeted the familiar and relaxing tone of Ranger Dan. The pudgy man in the tan ranger uniform was sauntering toward her, heading the opposite way that she was.

"Hi, Dan," Ashley bid with a calmed smile. It was dark enough where it was beginning to get hard to make out finer details, but she could see his squinty-eyed smile above a chubby nose.

"Long time no see," he jested with a chuckle. She'd just seen him that morning.

"Heh, yea," she warily replied, readjusting the guitar case strap on her shoulder.

"Off to play a show at Bob's, is that right?"

"Yep. Yep..." She nodded complacently.

"Whatcha doin' all by yourself out here? Where's your pops?"

"You know _him_," Ashley sighed.

Dan laughed sheepishly, scratching his nose with a knowing nod.

"Aw, say it ain't so," he sympathized.

"All right, I...won't say it," Ash joked with a shrug. This got a bit of a laugh from Dan, which shifted into an empathetic sigh.

"It's hard to pull the Doc from his work, huh?" Dan noted.

"Mmhmm..." A nod from Ash. "I'm about to go see him in a bit, though. A-and I'll be here tomorrow, too. And so...-"

"Ah, that's nice. He told me ya'll are gonna do a fine bit o' fishin' in the morning."

"That's the _plan_," Ashley hesitantly mumbled, tousling the hair on the back of her head. "To be honest, it'll take a miracle to catch a single fish between the two of us."

"_Well, _now," Dan cocked his head with a wry smile. "It's not about the fish, is it? It's about spendin' quality time with your pops..."

"Right," Ashley acknowledged. Yea, that was a good point.

"So," Dan glanced about the area – he had a habit of doing that, just glancing about. "Whatcha been up to at Lake Juliet on your lonesome?"

"Oh. Y-ya know, just...practicing."

"Ah! But out here? On a chilly day like this?" With his hands on his hips, he cast a gaze out across the lake at twilight. "Why, Miss, I'm sure if you'd just asked Bob, he would've been just keen with letting you use the diner for practice."

Ashley knew that full well. In fact, Bob had made the offer when she and her friends had finished their lunch.

"Ha, yea, you're probably right," said Ashley courteously. "Guess I just needed some fresh air. I don't get out much like this anymore!"

"That a fact? _Oh, _yes, your pops mentioned you're off at university now. Studying hard?"

"Yea," Ashley breathed out tiredly. "Maybe not hard enough," she muttered under her breath. With a sullen shrug, she explained, "It's been nuts. I've been...getting distracted, and now I'm bit stressed out, to tell you the truth."

"Aw, now, that's a shame. I'm sure it's been tricky. Higher education ain't a simple thing. But you just stick with it, Miss. Bright lady like you? You're goin' places, just like your old man."

"Thanks, Dan." Ash nodded. "I'll give it my best shot." She appreciated the ranger's ever-present enthusiasm. Did he _ever _get sad? She hoped not.

"Well," Dan grunted, patting his plump tummy. "The old belly furnace needs some fuel right quick, and I've got one more round to make before dinner time, but I'll be seein' you at the Shack soon enough!"

"Sounds good," said Ashley, starting to walk onward and waving him off. "See you in a bit!"

"Safe travels, Ashley!"

Ashley was left with an endeared glow in her gut as she continued on, like the man's radiantly optimistic and encouraging attitude was lighting her way to the cottages ahead. She was sure glad that a man like that had his eyes watching over this beautiful place – and looking out for Dad, at that.

Before too long, Ashley found herself passing by her Dad's cottage – the first on the left. And toward the right, Bob's Snack Shack greeted her with the wafting scent of fried foods. Her stomach felt like it was gurgling just at the smell. Lunch felt like a small eternity ago.

Ashley entered the diner, welcomed by its laid back atmosphere. A country kind of twang echoed throughout the joint over the weathered speakers. The place was presently empty, save for its namesake, the owner, who greeted her with a casual wave. Bob was a rotund man with a scruffy face and a baseball cap that Ashley swore must've been glued to his head.

"Oh, howdy," he bid her, hunched over the main countertop strip of the diner. He was tapping away at a laptop.

"Hey, Bob," Ashley said, lingering by the door. She glanced around the empty joint. The scuffed tile flooring, the rickety wooden furniture, and the photographs on the walls...It was a pleasing, relaxing scene.

"Was startin' to _wonder _when you might show up," Bob said, staring contemplatively at his laptop's screen.

"Heh." Ashley shrugged as she approached. "I'm...trying to be a rock star, right? I guess that means you all have to get used to me being fashionably late."

"_Hah!_" Bob grinned, pushing himself up from his computer and pointing a sly finger her way. "I like the way you think, kid."

This exchange melted the corners of Ashley's ice-cube mood.

"Is this seat taken?" Ash continued her jovial streak with a facetious smirk, gesturing to one among many empty stools.

"Eh, I'm sure he won't mind if ya borrow it," Bob brought the sass back. "So. Ya hungry?"

Ash nodded, leaning her guitar case against the counter and taking a seat.

Bob offered, "How about an SRB, huh?"

"I just had one of those for lunch," Ash reminded.

"So?" retorted Bob.

Ash laughed through her nose and popped up one shoulder.

"You talked me into it," she muttered with a small smile.

"I'll whip one up for ya, fresh n' hot," said Bob, twirling his round self to his freezer and preparing to get the grill going. "You look a little cold."

"Ah, yea." Ashley pushed hair back over her shoulder and scratched her neck. Felt like she had a mosquito bite or something. "I was outside for a while there."

"Didn't bring a jacket?" wondered Bob as the grill sizzled before him.

"Nope."

"Ain't college supposed to be makin' you _smarter_, kid?" Bob teased, prepping the rice buns.

"_Supposed_ to," said Ashley with a dulled smirk, folding her hands together in her lap. She latched her ankles against one another and stared blankly at the countertop, lamenting on her string of 's comment reminded her of something Dad had said the day prior.

_["I thought you were smarter than this, Ashley..."]_

"_College is harder than I was expecting..."_

_["That's why you need to be putting your best step forward, instead of focusing on boys, or...or guitaring, or...-"_

"_Dad. That's not it! I can't you'd...-!"_

_["What else could it be, then? Unless you're hiding something else from me?"]_

"_I didn't hide _any_thing! I don't need to tell you every single detail of my life."_

_["Like your episodes? That's not a minor detail."]_

"_Wh-?"_

_["I have to ask Jessica how you're doing because you keep avoiding the subject. Now I know why."]_

"_Dad, that's personal. That's not your business."_

_["I'm your father, Ashley. Your safety is always my business."]_

"_Not _always_."_

_["...Why haven't you seen a doctor yet?"]_

"_Because I'm not _sick._"_

_["_Something _is not well with you if you're passing out like this."]  
>"'Like this?' Like <em>what? _How would you know? When do you even _see _me?"_

"You there, kid?"

"_Huh?_" Ashley was sucked back to the diner, to the smells of a fresh meal on a plate before her. Her heart jittered again from the shock.

Bob was glancing down at her with a concerned look.

"I tried askin' if you wanted somethin' to drink, but...nothin'. Was worried you'd fallen asleep on me! I didn't think I was _that _boring...Ha."

"Oh..."With warm cheeks, Ashley sniffed, rubbing her finger against the edge of her nostril. Felt like she might be catching a cold from being outside. "Um, sorry," she said to Bob. "Just...lost in thought for a minute."

"Well, now's the time to get lost in my _cookin'_!" Bob jeered back, tidying up his supplies now that the meal was prepared.

Ashley stared at the steam slowing rolling from the nigiri-styled dish. On the plate before her sat 'burger' of red fish meat and sauces wedged between two patties of rice. The Salmon Rice Burger had become Bob's specialty food – and Ashley's late mother Sayoko had been the one to inspire the dish years ago. Every time Ashley ate one – which wasn't all that often, really – it brought a taste of nostalgia. It was something, perhaps minor, that Sayoko had left behind for the world to enjoy. Something out in the open, not hidden away behind research and secrets and laboratories. Of course, a Japanese dish in an American diner wasn't the only thing Sayoko had left for the world: she'd also left a daughter. And Ashley wanted so badly to..._become _something worth giving up a life for. Music wasn't just a hobby or a passing interest, it had become a calling. Not just for her, but for her Mom's sake, too.

"I know, I know," said Bob in jest, drawing Ashley out of her head again. "The SRB's a real majestic piece of art," he said, remarking on how she'd been sitting and staring at it. "But it's a lot more beautiful when it's in your mouth, kid. You gonna wait 'til it's cold, or what?"

Ashley worked her hands around the food, gripping it in her fingers.

"Bob," Ashley said, recalling a comment Bob bragged about this particular food. "I thought these were just as good cold."

"..._Aghh_," Bob grunted with a smirk, tossing his cleaning rag onto the countertop by the grill.

Ashley, content with her attempts at humor, chowed down on the delicious, hand-cooked meal. She managed to keep herself in the present while she consumed it, taking in the sounds of Bob's twangy taste in music, the business end of a phone call he received, and the slow, steady tapping of his laptop keyboard.

"How's the online store going?" she wondered inbetween bites, watching him study his screen with narrowed eyes of contemplation.

"Eh? Oh, it's...-" He fidgeted his cap to scratch an itch on his head, then realigned it. "Well, I ain't gonna lie: it hasn't been gangbusters, but it's a boat I'm keepin' afloat."

Ashley nodded with understanding. She knew the feeling. She let Bob work a bit more as she finished eating. She enjoyed the relative tranquility. Bob was a man who loved his chatter, but he also comprehended the value of slow, restful moments. Her food all but gone, Ashley was licking her finger, adhering stray rice beads from the plate and cleaning it rather thoroughly.

"Scarfed that one down real quick," Bob observed, grinning.

"They're really good," conceded Ashley. "Thanks. Um...-" She already knew the answer to the question, but it was the courteous thing to do to ask. "So how much do I owe you?"

Bob's head slowly turned her way with a dry look.

"Kid," she insisted flatly. "It's on your dad's tab, don't even worry. Oh, _actually_...-!" He snapped his fingers at her, an idea dawning on him. "Yer playin' a little show here real soon, right? So, there ya go. Dinner's on the house, then."

"Ah..." Ashley's full, satisfied stomach squirmed a little at the thought. She was rapidly losing her confidence in performing that evening, but she'd already gotten all of the plans arranged. She couldn't let people down. "Come to...think of it...-" she started up slowly, getting up from her seat. She swiveled her guitar case a bit, considering if she was ready. "I could probably do with a little more practice before then," she cited. "Do you think I could...-?"

"Have at it," Bob merrily advised, flicking his arm out toward the empty space in the corner of the diner. "Already cleared out a spot for ya – pull up a chair and have fun."

"Thanks," said Ashley, feeling the SRB's magic working through her system. Maybe this would all turn out OK.


	2. Part 2

Ashley had managed to survive through a whole song, and now she was ready to play the second – _her _song. True, she hadn't really written it entirely The song itself, the melody, not that part. She'd helped a bit with some of the background stuff, but here, by herself, there _was _no background stuff. And she wasn't even the one used to singing it. But all the same, she laid claim to it. He'd given it up without incident to her. But it still didn't feel like her own.

"Another, man, another," cried Tommy from his seat mere feet ahead. He, Sam, Janet, and Elizabeth were all seated at the table right in front of her, while the rest of the diner was, well...not so populated. A couple of employees from JC Valley that Ash recognized were lingering at the counter, enjoying some diner-prepared coffee together. Dad had probably asked them to come. Speaking of which, she'd seen Dad just a moment ago while she'd been playing...Where had he...-? Oh, there he was, emerging from the restroom hall. Bathroom break? Had he rushed on over so quickly he'd forgotten to use the restroom? Seemed like something Dad would do...

"Play the one about the river," Janet requested.

Of course. The one Ash was feeling most nervous about. The one that mattered the most. The one that was _hers. _She'd meant to play it first but had chickened out, pushing it to second.

Ashley smiled timidly, shirking at the notion that they actively wanted to listen.

"I don't...-" Ash began in a mumble, plucking at her strings absent-mindedly. She was running without a sound system, so she supposed that was part of why her friends were seated so close. But the diner was pretty small, too, so the projection wasn't really _needed_, it worked just fine with...-  
>"Come on, Ashley," Elizabeth teased. "Don't be a Pokey Pup. You have a demanding audience here."<p>

Ashley laughed nervously in spite of herself, and readjusted her sitting position. She noticed Dad hovering to her right, studying the old photographs and newspaper clippings on the wall. Keeping a safe distance, acting aloof. Or maybe it wasn't acting, knowing him...

_Right. The song._

Ashley cleared her throat and steeled herself. She flicked her pick against the strings, fine-tuning her instrument here and there, stalling the inevitable, until a minute or so later when she was finally ready to go.

A deep breath. Quivering nylon. Vibrating wood. Closed eyes. Trembling lips.

"~The river, the river, it tumbles on down; A blue flood, a true flood; it crumbles around...~"

_Smiling faces. They're smiling, Ashley. Having a good time. _You_...are having a good time._

"~The current, the current, it pushes so strong; A cold rush, a bold rush, it pulls me along...~"

Practicing against the tree by Lake Juliet.  
>Practicing in the band room on campus. Practicing on the quad.<p>

Huddled together over a computer screen. A notebook. A sketchpad.  
>Snuggling together in their pajamas in bed, a marathon of Pinkie Rabbit cartoons on a laptop.<br>A phrase, a sentence, a condemnation: it was over.

Pulled along all that way, just to be cut off.

"~I cannot fathom, I cannot follow; Aching arms, tired legs, won't allow  
>Me to arrive upon shore; I can only dive 'til I see no more...~"<p>

Tears, drying up. Quicker than Ashley had wanted them to. It was always like that.

Even when her heart was overwhelmed, she'd force it back.

"_Calm down, Ashley," _the voices would say. _"Calm down."_

Aunt Jessica, Dad, her friends, even her enemies. It was always _"Calm down, Ashley." _

Stop crying. Grow up. Crying was weakness, she'd once been told. She didn't agree.

And yet when the tears started spilling, she'd always push back the flood. Dam up the river.

She wished she was brave enough to just dive, dive...

The music, the pain – one fed the other, which fed the other, which fed the other, in an endless whirpool.

The taste of french fries and nachos, the itch of mosquito bites, the damp, cold touch of grass blades beneath the blanket she sat upon. Garbed in his hoodie, garbed in his arms, giggling like a fool – a joke on the drive-in movie screen towering above. Laughter all around. His hands encasing hers within an oversized sleeve. The warmth – so warm – against her lips. It was a surprising sensation, awkward in its dampness matched with heat. But after the initial shock, it lit a spark in her chest and her stomach emptied in an instant.

Gentle, surprising, tingling...Her first kiss.

A dark room. Mom is scared. Everything is hazy, but that fact is clear. Mom is scared.

Wooden closet doors envelope Ashley. Mom sets her down. A pendant. A smile, burned into her brain.

Sayoko's face, _Mom's _face. It disappears into the dark blur ahead. A figure. Yelling.

A flash – a gunshot.

Silence.

"Ashley!"

"_...Huh?!" _Ashley snapped herself back to reality. Her head was throbbing, on fire. Her heart had skipped again. Her face was...burning up. It was warm, and wet.

Dad was right in front of her, his hand locked down on her left shoulder.

Confused by her predicament, Ashley went to lift her hands up to wipe at her tear-soaked cheeks, only to realize a guitar was rested in her lap. Her Lake Juliet peers were still seated right in front of her, agape with concern.

_No good...This is no good. Oh, _man, _I can't believe...-_

Ashley managed to clear her tears with her wrists, her breathing a bit jittery and she sniffled a couple of times. What the heck had happened?

"Ashley, can you hear me?" Dad's voice stiffly, sternly inquired.

"Wh-...? Of _course _I can...-" Ashley trailed off. That sounded bad, what he'd just asked. She couldn't even remember how or when she'd started crying. Or how far she'd even gotten into her song.

Dad pulled her face into his shoulder and gave her a tight squeeze. Trying to steady her breathing, Ashley tried to read her friends' worried reactions over Dad's back.

"You were _really _out of it for a minute there," Janet murmured, her thumb fidgeting a button on her blouse as she stared, wide-eyed, at her friend.

"Is she OK?" Tommy asked as Ashley's Dad let her go.

"Are you in pain?" Dad asked quietly.

Ashley shook her head, avoiding his gaze. He looked...scared. She didn't like it.

"Th...There's a bit of a headache, I guess, but...-" She pressed her right hand against her forehead in a daze, then shrugged up her shoulders, her face boiling with embarrassment. She sniffled, her face all gunky from sobs she hadn't even realized were happening. Unslinging her guitar strap off of her shoulders, she carefully set her guitar on the floor. She bumped it with her sneaker when she tried to rise up – the world had reformed and all, but it was tilting a little.

Wobbling steps away from her performance stool were met with some wary looks from her friends, and Dad kept hovering around her, as if he was ready to catch her should she fall.

She wasn't going to fall.

"Ashley, where are you...-?" Dad asked.

"I don't...know," Ashley earnestly answered, acknowledging her mishap as she slowed her troubled steps. She coughed, sniffed again, and rubbed her wrist over her nose. Yuck, still runny. Wiping gunk on her pants, she groaned quietly.

"You seem...rather upset," Dad noted, lingering behind her. She could hear her friends whispering about their curiosities, as well. "I know things are probably...rather tough right now. Breakups are...difficult, but...you just have to acknowledge that-"  
>"Dad," Ashley snapped – it was more of a whimper mixed with a scold. She spun herself around to face him. Her already pinkened cheeks started to glow even brighter as she noticed the perplexed looks of her peers at the table.<p>

"Breakup?" Elizabeth repeated inquisitively, staring at Ashley with confused brows.

"So...-" Janet gasped in realization, clamping her palm against her lips with dramatic flair. "You left the band...That's why, isn't it?"

"N-no, that's...not...-" Ashley pushed hair over her shoulder as she scrambled for an explanation. "I mean, not _entirely, _but...-"

Ashley's stomach writhed. This was awful. This wasn't how they were supposed to find out about it. It was going to be some quiet, nonchalant thing she'd coolly pass off during a text conversation or...or an Internet chat, or whatever. Not like this. This left her vulnerable. Exposed. And not on her own terms.

"Why didn't you tell us?" Elizabeth pondered with her squinty-eyed, suspicious look.

Ashley just shook her head and glared at her father, who seemed to have comprehended his mistake.

"I can't _believe _you, Dad!" Ashley snarled. "You're so..._awkward. _You don't...-" She was flicking her wrists out in frustration now. "You have absolutely _no...social...awareness. _Do you?"

Dad grimaced, evidently pin-pricked by Ashley's remark. It was callous, she knew that. But she was angry, she was hurt – and she had a habit of letting loose words fly when that was the case. It often seemed like the only way to get Dad to listen.

"Ashley, I only meant to...help you realize what the problem is. You can't solve a problem without identifying the-"

"_This_-!" Ashley growled, tossing out upturned palms in aggravation. Childishly, in a fit, she stomped to the door, her eyes burning up because they had no more tears left to spill. "_This _is why I don't _tell _you stuff, Dad."

But Ash was already taking her leave. Dad, her friends, the food, the guitar, her horribly mediocre singing...She needed space from _all _of it.

"Ash?"  
>"Hey, whoa, wait...-!"<br>"Where is she going?"  
>"Ashley."<p>

The clamoring of those in the diner was a wash of words in Ash's ear as she took her leave. She wanted to slam the door real hard on her exit, but chickened out. She was raging, but she had to keep it under control, right?

Stewing in her mixture of frustrations, Ashley wrapped her queasy stomach in her arms and trekked off down a path to her left. It led to the woods, and to old lady Graham's gardens. Jamming her hands in her pockets, she scratched at the inner fabric nervously as she paced. She shivered, her hair standing up. Yep...it was still pretty chilly outside, though moreso than earlier, with the sun having been set and all that. A tanktop wasn't going to cut it. She shouldn't stay out too long. But she needed...space. That was all it was.

So what if she'd had a breakup? That shouldn't stop her from pursuing what she cared about. Yea, it sucked. She'd really liked him. But it was stupid to think her first boyfriend was going to be the only one she'd ever have. It was equally stupid to think she'd become a famous rock star. Heck, even just making a _living _off of her music felt so unrealistic now. '_If you really want something bad enough, you'll get there eventually,' _or whatever nonsense she'd used to tell herself, and her friends.

_That doesn't mean I shouldn't try, I know, but...it just feels like such a lost cause. And how stupid is _that_ to let myself believe, too, right? Of course this sort of thing will be difficult. I guess I just need to reorganize myself? As long as I just keep on playing, keep on writing, sooner or later I'll get to something good. Maybe not a rock star, maybe not famous, maybe not even making that much money, but...-_

A bitter breeze swept through and stung at Ashley's skin. The early night was crisp and clean, the quarter moon starting to cast its glow upon hazy clouds above up in that endless well of bluish-black dreams, speckled with white ideas. Set to the tune of sneakers scuffing dirt and plants rustling in the wind, Ash found that moment of respite _outside _of her head that she needed. Things were not all they could be. Things were hard, and even when they weren't hard, they still hurt. There was still that prying doubt, that nagging sensation that for all the good things her peers had to say about her or her work, her passion, she wouldn't make it far with what she had.

Ashley suddenly had a desire to talk with someone, but not anyone who'd just seen her lose herself. Irked by her own inconsistency, she ran her fingers across the stickers on her phone, teasing at a loosened corner with her thumb. She took the phone out and made a call. That was one benefit of JC Valley taking up occupancy in this natural park – the den of scientists had ensured there was a strong signal in the area.

[Calling...]  
>[<strong>Matt<strong>]

She shivered as she walked, holding the phone up to her ear. Each passing dial tone brought more awareness of her elevated heart rate. Like some kind of mini panic attack.

_What if something _is _wrong with me? What if my head is...sick? What if I have to see doctors and-  
><em>["Ash...-?"] Matt moaned drearily through the speaker, shaking her from stray worries.

"Muh-" Ash coughed out. Clearing her throat, she re-greeted, "Matt. H-hey, how're...-?"

["It's...really early..."] Matt cited through sleepy syllables.

Oh, gosh. Matt was in London. It was probably some ungodly hour for him. Urgh, stupid, Ash...Well, no use backing out.

"Ah, _right,_" Ash spat. "Sorry, I wasn't...really thinking, I just...-" Her throat was tightening as she spoke. Just trying to speak in her unstable state of mind was a task. "-...I needed to talk to somebody, and...-"

["...Are you OK?"] Matt asked with some solemnity. ["Are you crying...?"] His voice was a bit crackled through the speaker.

Ash laughed through a dry sob.

"I guess," she mumbled sheepishly, smiling in spite of herself.

["Is something wrong?"] Matthew's senses were collecting as he drew up concern. ["What happened?"]

"Everything's...fine, I'm OK," Ash muttered, taking a deep breath as she pressed her free palm against her chest. "I..._think _I'm OK," she amended. A pause of lamentation passed before she added, "I don't know."

["Uh...All right,"] Matt mumbled. ["Did your trip to Lake Juliet not go so well, or...-?"]

"I'm...still here, actually."

["Oh."]

"I'm just having some issues, it's...just me," Ash tried to explain. "I tried playing music for the guys, and...it didn't...go so well."

["...Ah. Sorry."]

"I just feel like I'm...messing a lot of stuff up lately."

["Yea, you...mentioned that last time."]

"Right." Ashley swallowed, scratching at her neck. "What I..._didn't _mention was that, uh...my boyfriend, he, erh...he broke up with me, and...-"

["Oh. Uhh...jeez. That's gotta stink."]

"_Yea_, kinda."

["Wasn't he your band partner?"]

"Mm. Yea, and so...I couldn't handle staying in the band."

["Makes sense. That could be awkward."]

"I don't know. I feel like if I was more...grown-up, or...something, I could've made it work. You know? Like, if I could really put my music first, then...-"

["Maybe you just need some time off?"]

"Maybe...But he doesn't need me. Really. I'm...not all that _good, _honestly, and...-"

["You're probably better than you think. Isn't that, like, a thing with artists? They never think they're as good as they are."]

"Mm..." Ash nodded, her phone stuck to her ear as she paced along.

["Besides, that must be tough – trying to do something like that with all of that...emotional stuff going on. I know the feeling."]

"Yea..."

["I dunno. Just...don't quit, keep at it...that sorta thing."]

"_Tsh. _Thanks, Matt. You're...really encouraging," Ash teased his blunt and simple efforts.

["Heh. Sorry, I guess I'm not sure what else to say."]

"That's OK."

["And also...-"] Ash heard a crackled yawn come through her phone. ["-...it's so late...it's early."]

Aw, man. Right, he had been sleeping. And it was really cold out. She decided she ought to just turn back in, go back and...deal with things.

"You probably need to go back to bed, huh?"

["Yea...yea...probably..."]

"No worries. I didn't mean to wake you up."

["Eh...It's no problem."]

"Well...Thanks, Matt. We'll chat again soon."

["Sounds good. Take care of yourself."]

"I'll do my best. You, too." Ashley could feel her jaws chattering a little from the cold, and she swerved herself around, picking up her pacing as she headed back to the residential area.

["Oh, and good job, Ash."]

"Huh?"

["We had a whole conversation without you drifting off into space. Heh."]

"...Heh..." Ashley's insides churned. Matt was always one to tease her about that – it was in good nature early on. Then became more serious. And now, that he assumed she was taking measures to prevent it, back to the facetious end of the spectrum.

["Yep. So...Good night."]

"Night, Matt."

Whisking herself back toward Bob's diner, Ashley felt like an idiot. A juvenile, whiny idiot. Running off on folks like that – they were probably worried about her. And she'd made such a scene...Ugh. How stupid. She _was _mad at Dad, but she probably shouldn't have made that public knowledge. But she lost her patience with him so much in recent times...It felt like the only way to get him to actually take in, digest, and process what she needed him to was to, well, yell a bit.

As she walked through the early evening's bitter cold, Ashley needed a distraction from herself. She started to hum. She hummed to herself for a while – it gave her head something relaxing to do. She hummed the songs she had meant to play for her friends. Losing herself in familiar melodies, apart from lyrics or images or faces or words...it brought a small serving of clarity.

As she drew close to Bob's Snack Shack, she could make out two figures standing in front of the entrance door, caught in a small web of yellow light from above the entryway. It was Dad and Bob. She trailed off her hums and sighed to herself. They noted her presence and Bob smacked Ashley's Dad on the back briskly.

"Ah, see, Doc? What'd I tell ya?"

"Yes, well...-" Dad nodded, scratching his chin contemplatively. "You were right, Bob."

"'Course I was," Bob bragged. "I know the demographic. Anyways...-" He sauntered back a few steps and opened the door to his diner. "I'll let you two sort yourselves out, n' then come on in. I'll have some hot coffee waitin' for ya."

"Thank you," Dad bid him with a grateful nod, putting his hands in his pockets as he eyed his child.

The door closed, and Ashley walked into the yellow lamplight where her Father stood, like a runaway pup come home with her tail between her legs.

"Dad, I'm...-" she started up with a cough. Clearing her throat as she stopped before him, she finished her thought. "Sorry I got so...worked up."

"It's all right," he replied solemnly. "I apologize if I...embarrassed you in front of your friends."

Ashley's eyes darted off aimlessly, glancing down the cobblestone road to her left. She opened her lips, hesitated, and closed them. She considered a light-hearted reply.

"Hey..." She shrugged again sheepishly, looking up at him. "What are Dads for, right?"

He dropped a laugh and shook his head slowly, slightly. Smiling down at her, she could tell that his temper from earlier seemed to have quelled. She took a step toward him, her arm muscles jittering slightly from the chill. She kind of wanted a warm hug from Dad, but he was too absent-minded to think to do that. It wasn't really his style. He was a bit of a stereotypical scientist in that way.

_Did you used to be like that, Mom? Before I came into the picture? Awkward, clumsy, unaware?_

_Maybe you were. I guess I've got my own weirdness, too._

"Is everything all right?"  
>"<em>Hm?<em>"

Ash blinked at her Dad's curious look.

"Oh." She scratched dried gunk from her eyelashes and sighed. "I'm not sure," she replied to his question more formally. "Just when I think I'm OK, I get...those flashes, and...I just don't...-" She puffed out an exhausted breath, the vapors slightly visible.

Dad nodded with understanding. Wasn't he going to, like...invite her to come in, or...-?

"It's not easy," he said, thoughtfully stargazing. "Saying good-bye to someone you love – especially when you don't have a choice in the matter."

Ash felt her chest tighten. Here she was, making a big stink over some dumb breakup, when Dad had lost the love of his life in a matter of seconds – gone, permanently. No closure, no discussion, just...gone. Ashley missed her late Mother, sure, but...she'd only been three years-old. There wasn't nearly as much for her to miss. Barely anything she remembered. But Dad certainly could remember Sayoko. Seeing the stars reflecting in Dad's stoic, still eyes, Ashley's heart cracked a bit.

"All you're left with are the memories," Ashley muttered.

Cold hands tickling her stomach. Warm breath against her neck. Nails scratching against her scalp. Songs they'd created together. And that voice of his...

"Even the good ones," Ashley added, "they can still hurt. Huh?"

Dad nodded, tapping the back of his shoe's heel against the concrete.

"Indeed, they can," he agreed wistfully. "I think...-" He scratched at his stubble, nodding to himself. "I think those are the ones that hurt the most, really."

Ashley allowed her father a few seconds to mull over his thoughts. She swallowed the lump in her throat and rubbed her numbing fingers against numbing biceps.

Ashley theorized, "They remind you of...what you had. That happiness is a...real thing. And then _that_...reminds you of how you've lost it." Her teeth were chattering a bit as she shuffled her way closer to Dad, and closer to the diner's entrance. "And you wonder if...if you'll ever find it again."

Dad finally noted her approach as she reached his side. He realigned his glasses and offered her an empathetic smile.

"Something like that, I suppose," he conceded.

Ashley hopped up and down on her toes a bit, trying to convey how cold she was without being too blunt about it.

"Let's get you out of this chill," Dad decided, raising his brow at his daughter's antsiness.

"Sounds great," Ashley hurriedly spat, all too eager to make her way inside.

Her friends were still there, in the same place they had been, though their food was about gone by now.

Some relieved 'hello's' and 'hi's' were exchanged, and Ashley apologized, assuring she'd try again after a hot drink.

Bob had a pot of coffee brewing behind the counter, and Ash followed her Dad to the stools.

"Wow, kid," Bob noted with a sniff, pouring one mug of coffee. "You really _are _cuttin' your teeth on us, huh?"

As Bob set down the first steaming, dark drink in front of her Father, Ashley gave his a quizzical look. He laughed as he spun around. Pouring a second coffee, he added to his remark.

"Goin' all bonkers on us, walkin' out in the middle of a show, makin' a whole scene..."

Ashley's face contorted into a contained pout at Bob's words, but as he set a fresh mug of coffee on the countertop before her, he finished.  
>"You really <em>are <em>practicin' to be a proper rock star, ain'tcha?"

Ashley puffed a sheepish laugh at his teasing , and eagerly wrapped her palms around the ceramic mug, letting her trembling hands soak in the warmth.

"That's, uh, decaf, by the way," Bob added, filling a mug up for himself.

"Thank you, Bob," Ashley's Dad said with a nod.

"Yea, thanks," Ash followed suit.

Bob tipped his hat to the Robbins, then cracked open a tiny, plastic cup of creamer, dripping it in with his coffee. Ashley watched her Dad blow tiny ripples in his own drink, then take in a sip of the hot stuff, but found the idea horrifying. How could he drink it black, and so hot like that?

After sighing out with satisfaction, he waggled his index finger in that awkward way of his.

"_That's _it," he mumbled, seemingly to himself.

"...What is?" Ashley asked.

"What you were saying, about memories..." Dad nodded, staring off at a poster hanging up on the wall above. "It's imagination. That's what it is. It's something that...that a scientist and a musician can both relate with each other on. The driving force behind their work."

Her jaw slightly agape, Ashley's head, tilted upward, slowly found its way tipping down. He was trying, in his weird little way, to connect with his child. She allowed her Father to go on.

"We can remember what something was like, and then...-" He nodded some more to himself. "We imagine it, imagine how to recreate it, or how to make it exist in a way it didn't before."

Ashley shrugged, reaching into the basket to her left for some sweetener packets and creamer. The scent of the coffee was invigorating. Her time at college was creating some bad habits, perhaps, and a coffee addiction was one of them.

"That's all well n' good, Doc," Bob put his two cents in. "But if ya just sat around _imagining _stuff all day, nothing would get done."

"Exactly," Dr. Robbins said whole-heartedly. "Imagining is the painful part – the longing, the desire, pining for something that doesn't exist in the present...Then you have to work to _make _it exist."

Ashley sighed through her nose as she trickled sweet condiments into her drink, lightening its color. If this was supposed to be his way of encouraging her to move on...-

"Ashley," Dad said to her after another delicate sip. "When you have your...your episodes, what d-"  
>"The blackouts?"<p>

"Yes, yes. What do you find yourself imagining when you experience them?"

"Oh. W-well, I...-" A grunt came out as Ashley ran her fingernails through her hair. She was not inclined to go into details about her flashbacks. Not with Dad, certainly not in public. "Things I'm...sensitive to."

"Sensitive to?" Dad seemed curious about that one. Well, yea. She'd been vague.

"Yea. _Sensitive_ to," Ash repeated, wishing Dad could take a hint. "Personal stuff," she clarified as she stirred her drink around with a tiny plastic stick. Ashley hoped her cheeks weren't flushing as she had to hold back the less appropriate memories coming to mind. Swirling together like the sweetened liquid in front of her, sensations of all sorts flew around in her head. Not all of them were good.

"Things you write songs about?"

Ashley's head clicked a couple of gears together at her Dad's assertive hypothesis. She let the idea bleed together with her creamy, warm coffee as she drank in a few gulps.

"Mm-hmm," she acknowledged through her nose as she drank.

"Then are they really so personal, after all?" Dad slyly considered, wiggling his finger up with a thoughtful shrug.

Ashley's nose wrinkled at his words.

"Yea, they _are_ still," she insisted.

"Yet you won't talk about them."

"Because _talking _is...frustrating. Difficult."

"And singing songs is...easier?"

"...Not really. I guess not, no. But it...makes more sense somehow.

"Is that why you keep avoiding seeing seeing a doctor?"

At this, Ash's throat caught on too large a sip. She had to force it down in a hard swallow that stung. Clearing her throat afterward at casually as she could, Ash rubbed her fingers against her sternum as the pain lingered in her chest.

_Do I _like _having these...blackouts? I mean, sure, some times they take me back to times with Mom. What few memories I have of her. I once sought those out and all. And today, I've been doing it with my boyf-...with my ex._

"After your Mother died," Dad recalled with a pause, "I went right back to work. I didn't...allow myself the time to grieve her loss. I just kept re-living those last few moments with her in my arms, over and over..."

Ashley stared down at her coffee, unable to see her reflection in its creamy surface. Her Father continued.

"As if there was some special, hidden meaning hiding within them." He sighed through his nose and took a swig of hot coffee. "But there wasn't. I can re-live those moments a hundred times – I'm sure I have by now – but it was just a dying woman's words. Mutters and mumbles as she choked on her own...-" He trailed off, rubbing his fingers through tired eyes beneath his glasses.

_Jeez, Dad...Why are you talking about this? You don't need to get yourself worked up thinking about that sort of thing..._

"But each time I remember those moments," Dad murmured on, "I'm reminded that I...am alive. And that soon enough, I won't be."

"Dad..."  
><em>'Soon enough?' C'mon, Dad, you're not <em>that _old..._

"Sayoko wanted her research on human memory to bring people relief," Dad explained in melancholy. "And I fear that all it ultimately has brought has been pain – but with it, something important to consider."

"Our memories make us who we are," Ashley acknowledged. She had another gulp of coffee, tapping her fingertip against the side of her mug. "That's what we can leave behind...before we blackout forever."

Ash nodded wistfully, then looked up to her Father. Sayoko's loss had hit him hard, no doubt. Ashley had barely known Mom – it was her lack of presence that had brought pain. The lack of knowing who she was. Dad _had _known her, really well – and he'd lost her. And now he seemed like he was becoming the sort who might never love like that again, too afraid of the inevitable loss. Was that how Ashley wanted to be?

"And what's that?" Dad wondered. "What can we leave behind?"

"Questions," Ashley concluded. She drank inbetween sentences. "We can leave behind things for others to consider. Mom lives on in our memories...and that has led us to consider things we wouldn't have otherwise. That's what I want my music to do: to linger in people's memories, to raise questions for them to consider. When I have my blackouts, it's not just memories I'm replaying in my head. It's questions I'm asking myself. Things I'm...considering. I guess that's one way we're different, Dad."

"One way?"

"Well, OK – there's lots of ways," Ashley said quietly and with a light laugh. "But I mean...Science leaves new questions for people to consider by answering old ones. It causes people to consider the world around them and how it works. And music, that...-" Ashley clutched her hand against her chest and took a deep breath, staring down at blank space as she considered her thought. "Music, I think that's about the musician considering things about..._themself_, which...has the same effect on whoever listens to it."

Bob, who had been hunched over his laptop this whole time, chuckled.

"What?" Ashley grumbled defensively, her head shrinking into her shoulders a bit.

"Nah, nothin'," Bob dismissed with a flick of his wrist. He slurped his drink and shook his head a little. "Yer both just makin' me feel a little...small over here, ha."

"Small?" said Ashley, abashed that she might've come across as haughty.

"_Well_," Bob tipped his head to one side. "Just...talkin' about leavin' your mark on the world, and here I am...-" He gestured toward his screen. "Managing sales for microwavable snacks. Probably not much _I'm _makin' _anyone _consider, other than whether or not it's worth ordering frozen foods over the Internet."

"But Bob," Dr. Robbins put in, "isn't your whole goal to spread the joy of Salmon Rice Burgers across the world?"

"Of course," Bob playfully agreed with a sassy smirk. "I'm just sayin', this ain't changin' lives the way you two are talkin' about."

"It helps change _my _life," Ashley insisted. Bob gave her a quizzical look. "Bob, the SRB – my Mom was the one that inspired you to start doing that. Right?"

"Ah..." Bob nodded, scratching his chin. Indeed, about 15 years ago on a trip to Lake Juliet – when Bob was just working a food stand – Sayoko had given him the seed of inspiration that had eventually grown into Bob's primary product, the SRB. Unlike a normal hamburger, the Salmon Rice Burger was still yummy even when it was cold.

"She was a scientist," Ashley cited, "but she still helped you – a cook – consider a new idea. And now, every time I eat one of those, it reminds me of how my Mom's idea is...being shared with all _kinds _of people, through your online store."

"Hm." Bob was nodding slowly, hopefully mulling over Ash's notion.

"For all you know," Ash went on, "something you did, or...or said, some way you interacted with someone else – it could've had a big impact on them, even if you didn't realize it. Just like my Mom and the Salmon Rice Burgers you make."

"All right, I getcha," Bob said with a ho-hum shrug. "But don't make too big a thing of it, kid. I'm just a guy who loves to cook. I'm not making big waves in the grand scheme of...universe...stuff."

"Well, you're still doing your part," Ash piped in with optimism. "You're giving a musician and a scientist a place to...get warm and refuel."

"Ah, haha," Dr. Robbins chuckled. "You're a crucial part of the creative process, Bob."

"Heh. Yep, kid," Bob said with a humored nod. "You're quickly pickin' up on tools of the rock star trade: positive spin. Ya always gotta spin the PR in a direction where things come up roses."

Ashley smiled awkwardly at Bob's remark and shrugged. She finished off her coffee as her friends started clamoring from across the diner.

"So," Tommy started, bumping Ash's left shoulder with his knuckle. "How's our rocker holdin' up?"

"Yea," Sam jumped in, nudging Ashley on her right arm. "You bailed in the middle of a show, man."

Ashley warily shrugged off their remarks, her back still turned to them as she sat in her stool.

"What'd I say, guys?" Janet scolded in a hushed tone from behind. "Give the girl some space."

Elizabeth set a stack of dirty dishes on the counter to Ash's left as Janet bickered with the boys.

"Ah, thanks, Beth," Bob grunted, leaving his laptop long enough to set the plates in the sink.

"Are you all right?" Elizabeth asked Ashley with suspicion. "You didn't catch a cold or something, did you?"

"No," Ash sighed. "Sorry, I didn't mean to...just disappear like that, exactly, I...-" She glanced over to her Dad, who was slowly working his way through his coffee. "Sorry I worried you guys," Ash said.

"Hey, hey, it's totally not a problem," Janet assured. "You must have a lot on your mind."

"Yea, breakups are pretty cruddy," Sam cited. This earned him a spiteful glare from Janet.

"Well, it was probably the right decision," Elizabeth tried to encourage. "He was just dragging you down, anyway."

"Actually," Ash mumbled sheepishly, "_He _broke up with _me, _but...-"

"Oh." Beth seemed taken aback by that notion.

"That stuff happens," said Tommy. "Ya gotta just roll with it and keep on keepin' on, ya know?"

"I know," said Ash, containing her wistfulness as best she could.

"Don't be a mope," Beth scolded gently. "A pout is unbefitting for the stage."

"They've got a point," said Bob, scrubbing a sponge at some dirty dishes behind the counter. "Ya wanna be a rock star, ya gotta take these things in stride."

Ashley's head spun. She flicked up her hands in a sudden, irate gesture.

"Could you guys stop _calling _me that?" she snapped, her frustration spilling out through her tone.

At the tense silence she was treated to, Ash's cheeks were burning again, and she hunched over a bit, elbows propped onto the counter, her hands against the sides of her face.

She mumbled out bitterly, "I'm not a..._rock star__..._At this rate, I don't even...-" She trailed off with a shake of her head, continuing to avoid everyone's no-doubt concerned gazes.

"Ashley," said her Dad with some worry. "Is that what this is all really about? You're feeling frustrated with your music?"

"I'm just sick of lying to myself," Ashley explained matter-of-factly. "Now that I'm not in a band anymore, it's...becoming very clear how little people cared about my work. Like, my _own _work, the stuff I make all on my own..."

"Oh, stop," said Elizabeth. In a way, Ash was kind of appreciating the girl's bluntness. "Don't be so dramatic. Your music is great, you just need to keep at it."

"Yea, totally," Tommy said in earnest. "Maybe getting serious about music isn't what we do," he said, in reference to his own band, a more casual thing he did for the fun of it. "But that doesn't mean I don't respect what you're goin' for."

"Yea, I have all of your songs on my music player," Janet added her support. "And my favorite ones are the ones that are just you and your guitar."

"Really?" Ashley was dubious. Janet was the sort to say what she think people wanted to hear. Either way, true statement or not, it was still nice to hear some support. Her Lake Juliet crew wasn't one she was especially close with, but unlike her newer college friends, she could at least trust that their hearts were in the right place, looking out for her. "_Agh,_" she groaned with a slight head-shake, still refusing to make eye contact. "But it's nothing special. It's not..._good. _Not _really._"

"Ya know, Ash," said Sam, "takin' your songs seriously is one thing, but beating yourself up about it is too much."

"Yea," agreed Tommy. "Aw, man, like that _one _guy...?" He and Sam shared a moment of remembrance over someone.

"Dude," Sam tried to snap Ash out of her stupor by prodding her shoulder. "Don't do that to yourself. Gotta keep your spirits up."

"You want to be a pro musician, don't you?" Dad recollected.

"Yea, but...-"

"So keep playing," Elizabeth advised sharply. "I know that _boys..._-" She reached backward and gave Tommy a bit of a shove. He grinned awkwardly. "-...can be difficult, and I have an idea of how annoying it is, not having your Mom around. But instead of pouting about it – which really doesn't suit your complexion at all – you should be using it to your benefit. Making music that considers those things about you, that has other people considering things...-" She wriggled her hand vaguely in the air. "What you were prattling about earlier."

By now, Ashley's spirits were at least determined enough to be looking her friend in the eyes as she heeded those words. She nodded in understanding, letting Beth's opinion sink in.

"Mm..." was all Ashley had to say, re-aligning her hair so it wasn't falling over her face.

"So when you're ready," Janet said, evidently eager to move things into a less-melancholy mood, "I think you still have a setlist to finish, right?"

"Now," Dad was quick to mutter out, "Janet, I'm not sure if-"  
>"No, I'm fine, Dad," Ashley insisted, getting right up from her stool.<p>

"Are you sure?" her Father double-checked, watching Ash approach her guitar case in the corner of the diner.

"Nope," Ashley honestly replied with a shrug, plucking her beloved red guitar up from its bed and slinging the strap over her shoulder. "I'll...look into that later. I promise."

"Do you still have the doctor's number?" Dad wondered – he was understandly worried about the matter being brushed aside.

"Yes," Ash replied. "Tomorrow – before our fishing trip. I'll set up an appointment."

This seemed to placate her Father a bit, as he relaxed back into his seat against the counter.

"All right," Dad conceded. "But if you play right now...are you certain that you won't...have another blackout?"

"Nope," Ash repeated again, clicking open the latches on her case. "But right now, what I _am _certain of is that I want to play my guitar."

"_Woo!_" Janet cheered, flipping her palms against each other in peppy applause.

"Gettin' back on the _horse_!" Sam decried. "Yea!"

Beth and Tommy added their cheers as they all regrouped at the table in front of Ashley.

Ashley smiled timidly at the lot, then glanced over to her Dad with an exaggerated shrug.

"I've got an audience to try to pull this together for," Ashley cited, a grin finding its way across her face. "I'm not in a band, and this audience is tiny..." She smiled at the table her friends sat at.

"_**Woooo!**_" Janet hollered, her shout rattling the diner.

"And _loud_," Ashley added, giving Janet a playful glare. There was a bit of laughter as they all teased Janet.

_Not everyone I want to be here..._is_here..._

Ash pulled out her cell phone from her pocket, setting it down inside her guitar case as she recalled her conversation with Matthew. She sat down in her 'performance chair,' getting comfortable with her guitar. Glancing across the diner, she noted Bob's attention was focused on her now, and her Dad was lifting his coffee mug up toward her.

Ash pressed her fingers against her chest and took a deep breath, imagining Mom sitting in the seat she had just occupied – the seat right next to her Dad. She imagined Mom's bright smile, Mom's hand waving at her, encouraging her.

_But we don't always get a say in the venues we get to play._

Ashley re-tuned her instrument a bit, getting herself mentally prepared to try again.

_Just because I want to be a pro musician – really bad – doesn't guarantee I'll make it big..._

Ashley sniffed, rubbed her nose with her wrist, readjusted her wristbands, flicked her hair over her shoulders, and drew her guitar pick

_But I'm going to keep playing, keep writing, and keep singing. If not for my audience – however big or small – then for myself. _

Ash struck a few opening chords, reminding herself of the progression the song took.

With her friends egging her on to go for it, she smiled with one half of her face, taking a deep breath and steadying herself. She began the song with a trickle of fingered strings. She began to hum the main melody – the one she'd normally sing. She couldn't quite handle singing the lyrics right now. The humming would have to do – for now. One step at a time, and she'd find her footing again. Ashley wanted to focus just on the music. Just her and the song.

As she struck the first full chord in the song, Ashley closed her eyes, and let the world go black.


End file.
